Robert Boyd

Robert William Boyd is an American physicist noted for his work in optical physics and especially in nonlinear optics. He is currently Canada Excellence Research Chair in Quantum Nonlinear Optics at the University of Ottawa and on the Faculty at the University of Rochester.Robert Boyd was born in Buffalo, New York. He received a Bachelor of Science degree in physics from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and a Ph.D. in physics from the University of California, Berkeley. His Ph.D. thesis was supervised by Charles Townes and involves the use of nonlinear optical techniques in infrared detection for astronomy. Professor Boyd joined the faculty of the University of Rochester in 1977, and in 2001 became the M. Parker Givens Professor of Optics and Professor of Physics. In 2010 he became Professor of Physics and Canada Excellence Research Chair in Quantum Nonlinear Optics at the University of Ottawa. His research interests include studies of “slow” and “fast” light propagation, quantum imaging techniques, nonlinear optical interactions, studies of the nonlinear optical properties of materials, and the development of photonic devices including photonic biosensors. Professor Boyd has written two books, co-edited two anthologies, published over 300 research papers, and been awarded five patents. He is the 2009 recipient of the Willis E. Lamb Award for Laser Science and Quantum Optics. Prof. Boyd is a fellow of the American Physical Society (APS), the Optical Society of America (OSA), and SPIE. He is a past chair of the Division of Laser Science of APS and has been a member of the Board of Directors of OSA. He has also served as an APS representative and chair of the Joint Council on Quantum Electronics (it is joint among APS, OSA and IEEE/LEOS). Prof. Boyd has served as a member of the Board of Editors of Physical Review Letters and of the Board of Reviewing Editors of Science Magazine, and is on the Board of Advisors of the Templeton Foundation. He has an h-index of 64 (according to Google Scholar) and 54 (according to the Web of Science).